The CDC estimates over 3.8 million sports related concussions occur per year, with many occurring in high impact sports with head gear such as football. Over the years, various helmet configurations have offered protection from the impact of physical trauma to the head. However, the function of existing designs has been limited to providing a hard cushioned surface between the head and the impacting object/source.
The peripheral field of vision is typically measured using perimetry. Ophthalmologists using automated or manual equipment generally conduct perimetry testing to estimate how large the field of vision of an individual is. The field of vision is studied 360 degrees around a central plain (vertically, horizontally, and obliquely). As shown in FIGS. 1A, B, the human visual field has the potential to see 190 degrees horizontally and 135 degrees vertically (55-60 degrees superiorly) when in a primary forward gaze. Superior visual field increases to near 90 degrees with eye movement.
Present helmet designs have markedly restricted the visual field of its user. While there are proposed designs which improve some aspects of visibility, they fail to suggest an improved horizontal/lateral, vertical/up-down, and oblique/tangential peripheral field of view. While lateral field of view is moderately improved in these designs, up-down and oblique visibility remains essentially the same. U.S. Pat. No. 5,101,517 to Douglas, for example, resides in a sports helmet with transparent windows in the side walls. The windows are located so as to be laterally of and rearwardly of the eyes of the wearer to increase the peripheral vision of the wearer.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,539,936 to Thomas discloses a transparent guard assembly adapted for use in association with a sports helmet having opposing side regions with C-shaped recesses positioned therein. The guard device, fabricated of transparent materials, is said to provide users with increased peripheral visibility. U.S. Pat. No. 7,649,700 to Diemer is directed to providing enhanced peripheral vision to a wearer of a helmet. At least one lens member, adapted to be received at a predetermined location in the helmet, is operable to direct light from a side portion of the helmet to a location adjacent the eyes of a wearer of the helmet.
A helmet wearer's full peripheral visual field includes a near maximal potential at 180 degrees from a vertical meridian and 135 degrees (55-60 degrees up and 70-75 degrees down) above and below a horizontal meridian. However, as shown in FIG. 1A and 1B, in the case of existing football helmets, up/down visibility is obscured, particularly in areas such as 102, and in the entire area (arc) obliquely present between the vertical and horizontal planes. In addition, horizontal side-to-side visibility is truncated as well. There is an outstanding need, therefore, for a helmet structure that removes these impediments. With enough visibility, more athletes could completely or partially avoid collisions, which will ultimately lessen the force of a given impact from a physical trauma to the head.